Devices capable of doing work by exerting force upon an object generally are known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,762,304 discloses a door opener which includes a piston which is driven by a hydraulic fluid. The door opener described consists of two hydraulic actuators which are adapted to act along in two different directions in a horizontal plane, with one of the directions being parallel or substantially parallel to the surface of the closed and locked door which is to be opened and the other direction being named to the door surface.
Still another device capable of doing work is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,329,685 which relates to a pneumatically-powered battering ram which includes a mass to be propelled such as a piston and a supply of compressed gas disposed within the housing. As the battering ram is swung at an object such as a door, the piston is activated to accelerate against the door at a higher velocity than could be achieved merely by swinging.
Although each of these mechanisms appear to be useful for their intended purposes, they also appear to be rather limited in their scope of use. Further, each such device as well as others such as automotive jacks tend to be unnecessarily complicated in constitution. In contrast, the present invention relates to a device capable of doing a variety of work which is of relatively simple construction, inexpensive to manufacture, lightweight, strong and easy to transport.